


Commence Operation Iron Winter

by Akira_of_the_Twilight



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Convoluted Schemes, M/M, Mild OoC, Not Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie) Compliant, Rom-Com Shenanigans, Shenanigans, Snark & Sarcasm
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-29
Updated: 2015-06-06
Packaged: 2018-04-01 19:52:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 18,873
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4032517
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akira_of_the_Twilight/pseuds/Akira_of_the_Twilight
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony marched into Bucky's personal bubble until they were chest to chest. "All right Bucky bear. You. Me. Gym. I'll bring the suit." </p>
<p>Bucky grinned victoriously. "Whatever you want, tin can. I'll not only have you pinned in just a few minutes, I'll even have you out your fancy metal suit." </p>
<p>"Bring it, Barnes." Tony ran to the door, bumping into Steve. He spun and glared at Bucky challengingly. "I bet you a week of dirty dishes." He sprinted down the hall. </p>
<p>"You don't even do your own dishes in the first place." Bucky chased after Tony. </p>
<p>Steve watched in shock and amazement as Bucky and Tony disappeared from view, their banter echoing through the hall even as they vanished. </p>
<p>Clint cleared his throat and looked up at Steve like a child knowing that they'd just outsmarted all of the adults in the room and expected praise to be showered upon them. "Well," Clint started innocently enough. "I can definitely see why you'd think Bucky and Tony aren't interested in each other. I'm sure that innuendo about Bucky ripping off Tony's suit was completely innocent and not at all—" </p>
<p>"Shut up, Clint." </p>
<p>Clint grinned and saluted. "Aye, aye, Captain."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Steve studied the map before him as if it were in Chinese and he’d been asked to translate it into Vietnamese. He shook his head and crushed the map in his palm. He tossed it into the waste bin. “JARVIS, where’s Clint?” 

“I believe he is in the living room, sir.” 

“Thanks, JARVIS,” Steve grunted out his gratitude as he headed out of his bedroom and toward Clint’s location. 

“I recommend using caution in your approach. It appears Mr. Barton and Mr. Barnes are practicing their marksmen skills.” 

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Steve kept his defenses raised. Ever since Tony got the idea to buy Bucky and Clint foam dart guns, the two snipers had weekly competitions to show off their skills to each other and gloat. So far the collateral damage had been kept to a minimum, but there had been a close call when a stray dart had knocked Bruce's tea out of the quiet man's hands. A flash of green had entered Bruce's eyes, but a deep breath had calmed him down. Since then Clint and Bucky had gone out of their way to ensure Bruce wasn't hit, but that hadn't changed anything for the rest of the residents of Avengers' Tower—everyone else was open game.  

Steve peeked through the doorway into the living room. 

A stray dart zoomed past Steve's cheek.  

Clint hooted and jumped onto the back of the couch. He launched a barrage of darts at Bucky who rolled and ducked behind the bar.  

Tony, who appeared to be bearing witness from behind the safety of the bar, hissed in surprise and jumped back. "Oh no, Barnes, you do not get hide behind my alcohol. You either face Barton or I declare bird brain here the winner."  

Clint shot three darts at Tony. 

Bucky popped out from behind the bar and shot the darts out of the air. "I wouldn't complain if I were you, Stark. I'm your only defense." 

Tony swirled a glass of golden alcohol in his hand before taking a sip. "Nope. Still going to complain." 

Steve cleared his throat and stepped out from the doorway. "I hate to interrupt your game of who's the best shooter, but I need to talk to Clint." 

Clint lowered his gun as Tony grinned like a cat that had just found a fresh bowl of milk.  

"Ooh, what'd Legolas do now?" Tony asked like a five-year-old. 

Bucky rolled his eyes at Tony. 

Clint smirked. "You'll never find out until it is too late to save yourself."  

Tony feigned a pout, which he aimed at Steve. "Cap, Barton's being mean to me." 

Steve huffed and rubbed his temple where he felt a headache brewing. "I'm sure you started it." Steve ignored Tony's squawk of indignation and waved Clint over. "C'mon, Clint." 

Clint jumped off the couch, tossing Bucky and Tony a mock salute as he departed. "Enjoy the alone time, boys. I'm sure you'll make excellent use of it."  

Steve led them away from the living room, waiting until they were out of earshot to stop and lean against the wall. He crossed one arm over his chest and fished out a note from his pocket. He thrust the note at Clint. "Mind explaining this to me?" 

Clint snatched up the paper and crumpled it. "Cap, what part of secrecy, don't you understand?" Clint's gaze shifted around the hallway, scouring it for threats.  

Steve snorted in disbelief. "The part where you left a note to meet you inside the ventilation shafts, and you even attached a map with a location and time circled on it. I honestly didn't know if you were joking or if you discovered that one of our enemies had managed to hack into the tower and thought the vents were the only place you could tell me." 

"It's no joke, Cap; although, it's not as dire as what you suggested. I just don't want any..." Clint's eyes shifted again. "...interference." He locked gazes with Steve, conveying all of his seriousness with his eyes. 

Steve frowned and lowered his arm from his chest. "What is it?" 

"It's Bucky—" Steve's heart clenched "—and Tony."  

The sharp pain in Steve's chest at the thought of his best friend being in danger vanished. Confusion swept over Steve. He tried to reason out what Clint was getting at, but he was at loss as to what Clint was referring to. "Explain." 

Clint gesticulated wildly. "What? Are you blind?" 

Steve hit Clint with a deadpan stare. 

Clint let out an annoyed breath and rested his hand on his jutted out hip. "Right... Okay." He waved Steve to follow him. "If I'm going to have to explain it to you then I'd like to be somewhere where no one can _accidently_ overhear." Clint walked up to one of the guest room's and threw open the door. He scanned the room then motioned Steve inside.  

Steve's gut churned with the certainty that he was about to regret following Clint into the room, but he knew he had to figure out what was going through Clint's head or risk being blindsided when Clint did something crazy in the future that involved two of his teammates.  

Steve shut the door behind him and locked it. "All right, what is going on with Bucky and Tony?" 

"Well, that depends on what you're talking about? Are we talking about how they are the perfect pair for each other, or how about the fact they're both too oblivious to realize it? Yet somehow they are still filling the tower with so much sexual tension that I can practically taste the hormones in the air." 

"By the look on your face, I'd say the flavor is terrible," Steve managed to say through his surprise. His mind was already running through various interactions between Tony and Bucky, trying to sift through the casual camaraderie that came from being teammates and the heated arguments between them for any clues he'd missed that indicated a relationship beyond friendship. He found nothing. "Clint, there's nothing—" 

"Of course there is nothing going on!" Clint interrupted. "That's the problem. They need to bang each other, _minimum_. Best case scenario: we get the two playboys in an adult relationship with feelings. Not going to lie, even after everything he's been through, I think Bucky is our more emotionally equipped individual, so we'll have to work twice as hard on Tony."  

"'We?' What are 'we' even doing?" 

Clint smiled. "Fixing up Bucky and Tony, duh."  

Steve held up a hand to silence Clint. "Listen, I'm not sure why you think there is anything between Tony and Bucky." Clint opened his mouth and Steve cut him off, "Or why there _should_ be." Clint closed his mouth. "But even if there is something there, it is not your job or mine to bring them together." 

"It is when it interferes with the job." 

"And how does it?" Steve challenged. 

"Simple: it frustrates me, and if I am frustrated then I cannot function to my full capabilities on the field." 

"Clint." 

"What?" Clint asked petulantly. "It's true." 

Steve shook his head at Clint and headed for the door. "I cannot stop you from trying to set them up, but I don't condone it, so I'm not—" 

Clint grabbed Steve by the shoulders and spun him around. Their faces were only inches apart and Steve took a step back to give them some distance. Clint tightened his grip. "You love Bucky, and Tony is your best friend second to Bucky, isn't he? Don't you want them to be happy?" 

Anger flared in Steve's chest and he knocked Clint's hands away. "Of course, but that doesn't mean setting them up will do that. It could do the opposite in fact." 

"Bucky hasn't had anything but a few close friendships and handful of one night stands since we got him back, and Tony still locks himself in the lab whenever someone or something reminds him of Pepper. I'm not saying all of their issues will magically disappear if they start dating each other, but they already get along so well, dating each other might help them. Plus, even if they don't start dating, you can't deny that it would be great for them if they were closer friends. Come on, admit it. They're both smartasses and like to think they're the best in the room even if most of the time they feel like shit." 

Steve shook his head. He clamped a hand on Clint's shoulder, earning a curious glance from the archer. "I appreciate your concern for them, but I'm sorry Clint." He offered a small smile. "Try Nat. She likes setting people up." 

Clint huffed. "More like she likes setting _you_ up. I already talked to her about operation Iron Winter." 

"Iron Winter?" Steve asked skeptically.  

"Iron Man and Winter Soldier," Clint spoke like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Nat isn't interested. She said it would be too easy." 

"Right..." Sometimes Steve really questioned the maturity of his teammates. While he was all for goofing off and having a good time, there were moments when he felt like he was running a team of rambunctious kids and pre-teens. "Good luck." He backpedaled out of the room. 

Clint squawked in protest, but the doors slid shut before he could grab Steve again and run through another list of reasons to set up their teammates. 

Steve turned on heel and walked away. His thoughts wandered as he meandered through the tower.

Steve tried to picture Bucky and Tony as a couple, but he couldn't fathom what the two would act like. He'd seen both of them in relationships, but their past partners were so vastly different each other, it was difficult envisioning their personalities working off each other in a romantic situation.  

Clint was probably just overreacting and bored. Still, it was nice to know he cared so much for his teammates. 

Steve smiled fondly to himself as warmth settled over him. 

He stepped into the living room to check on Tony and Bucky.

Steve froze. 

"You son of a bitch." Tony scowled and wiggled under Bucky. 

Bucky chuckled, a glint of sadistic glee in his eyes as he held Tony pinned beneath him. His legs were entangled and locked around Tony's. His metal arm locked Tony's arms behind him, while Bucky's flesh arm encircled Tony's neck. "C'mon, Stark, an enemy has got you captured. How are you going to get out of it?" 

"I'd summon my suit and kick its ass, you steroid enhanced Neanderthal. The only reason I am not doing so now is because I rather not have to send you to Bruce for bandages and enough pain killers to sedate ten horses." 

Bucky laughed, his nose sneaking closer to Tony's ear, just brushing the outer shell. "Big talk, Stark. Now let's pretend you can't summon your fancy suit. What then?" 

Tony headbutted Bucky, or at least tried to. Anticipating the move, Bucky jerked his head away and tightened his hold.  

Tony sneered. "This is ridiculous and completely unnecessary. I'm Iron Man. I don't use muscles. I use science and ingenuity." 

"Well, Iron Man, use some of those brains and get away from me."  

"Oh, you'd love that wouldn't you?" Tony craned his neck so he face Bucky. "The sooner I'm away from your body the sooner you can stop forcing down little Barnes. I'm sure he's very excited to be so close to the Promised Land." Tony shook his butt for emphasis. 

"In your fantasies, Stark. Also, Promised Land? I wasn't aware I was promised anything from you." Bucky aimed a rogue smile at Tony's ass. 

Tony smirked. "Everyone gets one shot. It'd be cruel if I denied anyone at least a chance." 

"Ew, Steve, Bucky and Tony are reenacting a scene from _Fifty Shades of Gray_. ...Poorly."  

Steve jumped. He hadn't realized Clint had planted himself at Steve's side.  

Bucky and Tony didn't so much as spring apart, but it wasn't far from the guilty action either. If it weren't for Bucky's smug expression and Tony's irritation, the fast movement would have come off far more incriminating.  

Tony huffed and brushed his fingers through his hair. "You obviously have not read that atrocity for BDSM literature if you think we were recreating anything from that book." Tony raised his head haughtily. "We have better quips and more sexual chemistry."  

Clint looked pointedly at Steve. 

The tip of Steve's ears burned. He hid his embarrassment behind a cough, which he covered. "Perhaps you to should practice in the gym? I believe that's why Tony built it." 

"I was training him how to respond to a surprise attack; I can't do that in a gym. That's where he'd expect it," Bucky joked. 

Tony nodded in agreement then scowled as if he hadn't meant to agree with Bucky. He pointed accusingly at Bucky. "Except I don't need combat exercises." 

Bucky hummed noncommittally. 

Tony scowled and marched into Bucky's personal bubble until they were chest to chest. "All right Bucky bear. You. Me. Gym. I'll bring the suit." 

Bucky grinned victoriously. "Whatever you want, tin can. I'll not only have you pinned in just a few minutes, I'll even have you out your fancy metal suit." 

"Bring it, Barnes." Tony ran to the door, bumping into Steve. He spun and glared at Bucky challengingly. "I bet you a week of dirty dishes." He sprinted down the hall. 

"You don't even do your own dishes in the first place." Bucky chased after Tony. 

Steve watched in shock and amazement as Bucky and Tony disappeared from view, their banter echoing through the hall even as they vanished. 

Clint cleared his throat and looked up at Steve like a child knowing that they'd just outsmarted all of the adults in the room and expected praise to be showered upon them. "Well," Clint started innocently enough. "I can definitely see why you'd think Bucky and Tony aren't interested in each other. I'm sure that innuendo about Bucky ripping off Tony's suit was completely innocent and not at all—" 

"Shut up, Clint." 

Clint grinned and saluted. "Aye, aye, Captain."  

 

* * *

 

Steve looped the laces of his joggers and twisted them into a knot. He and Bucky had woken up fifteen minutes ago, beating the morning sun. The plan was to enjoy their usual morning run, and then somewhere in the middle of it Steve would casually bring up Tony.  

"This plan sucks." 

Steve jolted and looked up from tying his shoes. 

Clint dropped down from the vents in full gear and weaponry. 

Steve cocked his head at the outfit. "Going somewhere?" 

Clint waved him off. "Already took care of it. Got back just in time to see that you're serious about this whole talking to them thing." Clint snorted in distaste.  

"Call me crazy, but I think more people are willing to try asking each other out if their encouraged than if they are mysteriously locked in a closet with their crush."  

"Crazy." 

Steve smiled, enjoying Clint's humor. Steve rose to his feet. He stretched and arched his back, causing his shirt to ride up. 

Clint whistled in admiration. "Nice eight-pack there, Cap. They charge you more for the extra two?" 

Steve shoved Clint playfully. He could hear Bucky approaching from the hallway and headed for the door.  

"Also, let me just say this," Clint started, "don't come crying to me when your attempt at talking about _feelings_ ," Clint put air quotation marks around the word, "backfires." A mischievous glint entered his eyes as he jumped and grabbed onto the edge of the ventilation shaft. "I'll be watching rom-coms and making plans for operation Iron Winter until then." Clint heaved himself into the vent and crawled away just as Bucky knocked. 

When Steve opened the door to his room it was to the sight of Bucky in sweats and scrutinizing Steve like he had just grown a second head. "Did I hear Barton in here?" 

Clint popped his head out from the vent. "Yup." He disappeared.  

Bucky looked between Steve and the vent. The corner of his mouth curled in amusement. "So pretty you got people climbing in through the vents to get at cha?"  

Pink dusted Steve's cheeks, but he played it off with a scoff and shuffled out of the room. "Says the guy who's done plenty of sneaking into girls and guys rooms at night." 

Bucky's teasing expression faltered. A blank look consumed his features. 

Steve cursed as guilt rammed into his gut like one of Tony's repulsor beams. He knew that look; it was the expression Bucky always got whenever his mind teleported him back to his days as the Winter Soldier (not at all what Steve had been referencing when he mentioned sneaking into bedrooms). Steve could just beat himself bloody for sending Bucky into such a state. 

Steve’s fingers twitched at his side, but he kept himself from grabbing his friend. When Bucky was in one of these states, gestures that were meant to be comforting could be read as an attack and the memory possessing Bucky could take over and trigger Bucky to lash out.  

It was only a few seconds but it felt like years before the blank expression left Bucky. Bucky blinked as he came to. Steve could see the moment when comprehension dawned on Bucky. His best friend's gaze narrowed and studied Steve, assessing if Steve was injured while also searching for signs of anger or hurt. When Bucky finished his assessment, he shrugged nonchalantly and walked away, expecting Steve to follow.  

The reaction caused an ache in Steve's chest, but he didn't cave into his desire to push his friend for information. Bucky would talk to him if and when he was ready.  

They didn't say anything to each other for the first twenty minutes of their run around the city. The air between them was tense and there were many times when Steve opened his mouth to joke with Bucky, but he couldn't find the clever words needed to bring a smile to Bucky's face.  

"How about some free running over the city?" Bucky finally broke the silence. He nodded at the emergency fire escape of a building they were nearing. "Gettin' kind of bored with ground level." 

"Maybe we should talk Tony into making you a suit if you're so tired of the ground." 

"And be stuck in the air with Tin Man on missions?" Bucky wrinkled his nose in distaste. "No thanks." He jumped on the ladder of the fire escape and climbed with an ease that came with years of practice.

Steve kept pace and in no time they were on the roof of the small building. "I thought you and Tony were getting along." 

Bucky ran and jumped to the next building over, not missing a beat. "He's all right." 

Steve jumped onto the same building as Bucky, but by the time he landed Bucky was already vaulting over to another one. Steve picked up his pace and launched himself after his friend. "You two seemed cozy yesterday."  

A bark of laughter escaped Bucky. "Well shit, if putting a guy in a headlock is considered cozy, then call me the whore of Babylon, because I think I may been gettin' more frisky with people than I realized." 

Steve fumbled his landing a bit as they jumped to the next building, causing Bucky to stop and wait for him.  

Bucky was tense and ready to bolt once Steve righted himself, but Steve shifted his stance, making it clear he had no intentions of taking off. 

Confusion creased Bucky's forehead and he shifted so he was just standing more relaxed. "Something wrong, Steve?" 

Steve shook his head. He took a deep breath; better to be direct than kowtow his way through the discussion. "Do you like Tony?" 

"He's an arrogant and crazy son of bitch, but I like him fine." Bucky's eyes lit up the way they always did when he was presented with a challenge or a gal that had caught his fancy. There was excitement and determination in that gaze, and Steve wondered how he never noticed Bucky's eyes taking on those emotions whenever the topic of Tony was brought up. "He's actually kind of hilarious. Pretty good shooter too. Couple of lessons and practice and he might even be able to compete with me in a century."  

"You know what I mean," Steve said. 

Bucky's face fell. For just a millisecond his eyes widened with fright. He cursed and looked away. "Aw, Steve, just because I like the guy doesn't mean—" 

"Bucky," Steve used his no nonsense tone. It didn't always work, but he had a fifty-fifty chance of getting Bucky to take him seriously. "Just be honest with me. It's not like when we were younger and you had to hide liking guys, and even if it was, it's just me, Bucky." 

Bucky clenched his jaw and looked away. His muscles were tense once again, but this time it looked like Bucky was ready to fight. Bucky glanced at Steve and some of the fight was sapped out of him. "So what if I do?" 

Relief washed over Steve and it took every ounce of willpower not to sigh right then and there. "Then you should tell him. If you love Tony—" 

"Whoa, hold it." Bucky threw up his hands and took two steps back. "No one said anything about love. Yeah, I don't mind his company, but that's about it. Rest is just lust." Gleeful wickedness lit up Bucky's face. "Have you seen his ass? Tightest little thing I ever did see. Also has just the right amount of muscles and softness." 

Steve flushed. He'd heard far more graphic talk during the war and prior (a lot of that dirty talk coming from Bucky himself), but it was the topic of such talk that had him heated under the collar. He did not want to picture any of his teammates in that way. "So you just want sex?" 

Bucky nodded. 

"Have you asked Tony for it?" 

Bucky shrugged. 

That was a no.  

Steve frowned. After everything Bucky had been through, Steve was plenty aware that the Bucky he had before him now wasn't the same as he’d had in the past, but some things still remained the same. After riding himself of his Winter Soldier programming, Bucky had been reluctant to have any relationship, no matter how fleeting, but over time he'd gone back to his flirtatious ways, and Steve knew for a fact Bucky had more than a handful sexual encounters the last few months.  

So why hadn't Bucky asked Tony? 

Not to slander Tony, but the man was known for his sexcapades. He also returned Bucky's flirts, which was usually more than enough to encourage Bucky into asking.  

"Why not?" Steve asked. 

"He was with Pepper." 

Suspicion niggled the back of Steve's mind. "That was months ago. Why not since?" 

Bucky scowled. "To let the fella grieve? I thought that would be obvious." 

"So then why not now?"  

A string of Russian curses flowed out of Bucky's mouth. He stormed over to the edge of the roof. He turned his back on Steve.

For a while nothing was exchanged between then suddenly Bucky glared at Steve over his shoulder. "I have my reasons." He jumped off the roof. 

If Steve didn't know Bucky had survived worse falls, he might have panicked at his best friend's choice of escape route—because that's exactly what it was: an escape. Bucky Barnes was retreating. Bucky Barnes was fleeing from Steve's question about Tony. Steve's question scared Bucky, because it was too close to some truth Bucky didn't want to admit.  

There was only one truth Steve could think of for why Bucky would run away like he'd done: 

Bucky had feelings for Tony Stark that went deeper than just wanting to fuck around, and it scared the shit out of Bucky.  

Steve buried his forehead in his palm and groaned.  

God, and if Bucky was running away like a dog with its tail tucked between its legs then imagine what Tony's reaction (Tony: king of denying/repressing emotions) would be? 

Steve could already feel the headache coming on at just the idea of confronting Tony.  

 

* * *

 

Clint was sprawled on the couch watching rom-coms like he had promised when Steve returned to the tower.  

Steve picked up Clint's legs, took a seat, then dropped Clint's legs in his lap, uncaring of the invasion into each other's personal bubbles.  

"So..." Clint started. "What'd ya learn?" 

Steve tapped his fingers on the couch's armrest. "Do you think Tony just wants sex or something more with Bucky?" 

"Normally I'd say friends with benefits, but according to Nat, Tony might as well be some teenage girl crushing on whatever boy band is hot right now in regards to Bucky." Clint tilted his head in feigned curiosity. "Why do you ask?" 

Steve gritted his teeth. "I'm positive Bucky feels the same." 

Clint beamed. "And…?" Clint all but vibrated with excitement.  

"Operation Iron Winter is a go."  

Clint threw his arms up and hooted in joy. 


	2. Chapter 2

"This is so lame," Clint said into Steve's earpiece. 

Steve had been against using mission equipment for Operation Iron Winter, yet after some acrobatic arguments from Clint that tricked Steve into arguing in Clint's favor, he was using the advance tools. Because of Clint's trickery, Steve felt unusually vindicated by the man's disappointment in matchmaking tactics. "Basics first. Let's not go wild until necessary." 

Steve had invited Tony and Bucky out to lunch, and he had just faked an emergency text from Sam to get away from them. He'd popped in the earpiece once he was out of sight and exited the restaurant.

He shoved his hands in his pockets as he strolled around the block. The plan was to join Clint on the rooftop of the boutique across the street from the restaurant, but he couldn't exactly go dashing across the road without alerting Tony and Bucky to his position; Steve had made certain the hostess seated them at a window seat so Clint and him could spy from above. Unfortunately, that meant Steve had to take a roundabout path to join Clint. 

"This is boring. Also, I think Bucky knows what you’re up to." 

"How can you tell?" 

"The moment you got up Bucky looked like he wanted to murder you." There was a pause. "See, this is why we do not confront the people we are matchmaking about their love lives. They totally resent us and then resist all of our attempts." 

"You're beating dramatic." Steve came up to the side of the boutique where Clint was stationed. Steve slipped into the alleyway behind the small shop where a dumpster lay. He climbed onto the large dumpster to give himself more height then jumped the rest of the way onto the boutique’s roof.  

Clint was crouched down and watching their teammates intently from his perch. A pair of binoculars dangled from his neck but went unused.

Steve took out the earpiece and joined Clint. 

Across the street Tony and Bucky were smiling and chatting up a storm.  

Confidence and a sense of victory surged through Steve. "Looks like they're enjoying themselves." 

"Twenty bucks this goes south before they even leave the restaurant."  

"What would even make you think that?" Tony and Bucky liked each other, and they were having a glorious time. Short of a super villain showing up to ruin their unofficial date, Steve could not foresee any reason for things to go awry.  

"What? You scared of a little bet, Cap?" Clint taunted.  

Indignation swelled in Steve's chest, and he found himself puffing up as if take on an enemy. Steve took in a deep breath to calm himself. "I'll take that wager."  

Delight lit up Clint's face. 

They settled into spying on their friends. After just under an hour Tony and Bucky had finished their meal. They were in high spirits, and Steve could not keep the grin off his face as he slid a knowing look Clint's way.  

Clint smirked back. "Still time." 

The waiter arrived with the check. 

Tony and Bucky snatched the check at the same time and froze. For a moment they didn't say or do anything. Slowly the charming smile Tony reserved for the media formed on Tony's face. He said something and Bucky's grip on the check strengthened. Bucky smiled too—his tight and painful. He said something to Tony that caused Tony to struggle to maintain his expression.  

Steve internally groaned as dread ripped to shreds any sense victory he had possessed. "Don't tell me they are going to fight over who pays for the meal." 

Clint whistled, making the sound of a cartoon bomb falling then crashing. "They aren't _going to_ , Cap. They _are_." 

Steve watched in sickening horror and sorrow as the two men stood up and shouted at each other. Bucky slammed his hands on the table. Tony flinched then pulled out his wallet and threw out all the bills inside. He stormed out of the restaurant as Bucky gather up all of Tony's money, shoved it in his pocket, then pulled out his wallet and cash to pay for the meal.  

Either bored or unable to watch the scene unfold anymore, Clint turned around and propped his back against the guard of the roof. He held up his hands imploringly. "Plan A is a bust. What's plan B?"  

* * *

 

Plan B was a group activity that would force Bucky and Tony to team up. Steve had determined that much, but after the failure that was his first plan, Steve decided to let Clint choose the group activity. 

He should have known Clint would pick laser tag.  

"Finally, Cap, you're doing something cool." Tony clamped his hand on Steve's shoulder and gave it a squeeze. He was decked out in the laser tag gear and grinning like a maniac. "If you made training sessions more like this I'd attend every one of them." 

"Laser tag is nothing like what really happens out on the field," Sam said as he fiddled with the straps of his vest.  

Clint stuck his tongue out at Sam. "Then you're doing it wrong."  

Bucky examined the plastic gun in his hand. He flipped it over and gauged its weight. There was small quirk to his lips and he glanced at Tony.  

Steve could already tell Bucky had plans for Tony and they weren't anything romantic. 

Steve cleared his throat and used his "leader voice," as Tony liked to call it. "This isn't going to be a free for all. This is exercise is to improve on teamwork. You will be assigned pairs." 

"My partner is Sam," Natasha said. She had been the first one suited up and had been sitting on the bench as waited for the rest of the team to finish getting ready. She folded her arms over her chest and leveled Steve with a look that promised retribution if he protested her claim.  

"I was going to pair you two off." Steve raised his gun to show it off. "Obviously, this training leans more in favor of our long range players. So it's long range paired up with short range." 

"Uh..." Tony interrupted. "In case you forgot, Cap, I go either way." 

"I bet you do," Bucky whispered under his breath. If it weren't for Steve's advanced hearing, he'd never have caught the remark.  

"When you're in the suit, yes, Tony. However, you don't have an auto-targeting system. You're aim may not be bad, but it's nowhere near the same skill level as Hawkeye or Bucky’s, which is why you and Bucky will be partners." 

Steve didn't miss Bucky's scathing look, even if it was only present for a brief flash. The moment Bucky noticed Tony turning to look at him, Bucky schooled his features.  

Tony hesitated but sidled up to Bucky. He held out his hand. "Partners?" 

Bucky stared at Tony's hand then gazed around the room. He grinned and grabbed Tony's hand in a strong shake. "Watch my back and I'll get rid of these guys within a few minutes." 

Tony scoffed. "Watch your back? Please. I can take out these guys just like that." Tony snapped his fingers for show. 

Steve stepped between them, holding his hands up for peace. "Save it for the field you two, and for your opponents."  

Clint slung his arm around Steve's shoulders and beamed. "Yeah, cause your going up against us. No way am I losing to Tony Stark at a shooting game, and Steve always plays to win, right Steve?" 

"Right." Steve nodded. "Now, let's play."  

Steve had thought laser tag would be a fun harmless game. He should have known going into it with two SHIELD agents, a sniper and ex-assassin, a technical genius (arguably a mad scientist), and guy brave enough to jump into the middle of a fight between Hydra and Shield without breaking a sweat would lead to nothing but madness and ruin.  There were only six of them, yet Steve felt like he was back in the war with lesser stakes. Everywhere he turned there was someone shooting at him. He ducked, dodged, and ran. He only fired two shots and missed both times. Clint was covering him but even with his precision Clint was having a hard time hitting his targets. 

So far, Clint had managed to hit Sam and maybe Natasha. Bucky had made a couple of appearances and had even gotten a hit on Steve, but he was like a ghost.  One second he was there then the next he was gone.

No one had yet to see Tony.  

"Look out, Steve!" Clint shoved Steve to the ground just as Natasha jumped out from behind a barrier and shot. 

Clint shot too. 

The lights on Natasha and Clint's vests lit up, signifying they'd been hit.  

Clint collapsed on the ground and fake coughed. He raised a shaky hand to the sky. "Steve, never doubt I loved you. My only regret is that I did not tell you sooner. We could have been having so much sex." 

Steve rolled his eyes, but before he could respond someone shot him. 

Steve lifted his head in the direction just in time to see Bucky vanish.  

Suddenly Sam jumped out from his hiding spot, aiming at where Bucky had been seconds ago. 

Sam cursed. "Slippery fella, isn't he?"  

The lights on Natasha and Clint's vest died down, signaling that they were back in the game. 

Sam aimed his gun at Clint but didn't shot. 

Natasha looked between the two groups in an assessing manner. "What are the rules in this game?" 

Clint let out a sound of amusement. "I think it's obvious, Nat." 

Natasha pointedly zeroed in on Steve. "You want us to pair off, but does that mean we are not allowed to team up with other groups?" 

The lights on Steve's vest died down then, just as he realized Natasha's real question. "I wouldn't be against a little teaming up to take Bucky and Tony down." 

"Have any you guys seen Tony, by the way?" Clint asked. 

Natasha and Sam shook their heads. Sam lowered his gun from Clint.  

"If this were capture the flag I'd say Tony was guarding the flag, but since we're just trying to shoot each other as much as possible, I'm not really sure what kind of strategy this is." Sam frowned. He pursed his lips in concentration as he tried to piece together the reasoning behind Tony and Bucky's movements. 

"Knowing Tony, he's got something cooking and Bucky is just playing distraction," Clint said. 

"Then we should go after Tony," Steve responded. 

"One problem," Natasha added, "that brings us back to the fact that none of us have seen him yet." 

Steve opened his mouth to talk but just then Sam and his vests lit up from being hit from behind. He whirled just in time to see Bucky dash into the dark.  

Clint fired a round of shots as Natasha dove after Bucky.  

The chase was on. For ten minutes they ran around the area, spreading themselves out so they weren't one big target, but keeping close so that they could group together when needed and corner Bucky. Steve kept an eye out for Tony, but the genius never showed. The quartet finally chased Bucky toward one of the towering structures that made up the labyrinth of a room, effectively boxing him in.  

Bucky whirled and shot at Natasha. 

Natasha dropped and rolled out of the way. 

Clint aimed his gun just as Tony popped up from the top of the structure behind Bucky and fire one shot. 

The one shot should have only taken out one of them, yet all four vests lit up as Tony crowed in victory. "Team Iron Soldier takes the lead!" 

Bucky snorted in amusement and climbed the structure that Steve and the rest had thought served as a barricade. By the ease in which Bucky scaled the structure it was obvious he could have escaped at any time. They’d been tricked.

Bucky swung himself over the top and joined Tony. "We've been in the lead all along. Now go back in hiding." 

"Hey, it doesn't count if Tony cheated!" Clint hollered, cupping his hand around his mouth. "Manipulating the guns so they shoot multiple lasers is not allowed." 

"I don't think they're listening," Sam said. 

Tony and Bucky weren't. 

"I just put us so far in the lead, you should be thanking me." 

"And we'll stay in the lead so long as you stay in hiding." 

"Are you saying I'm deadweight?" 

“I'm saying you’re an easy target." 

"Funny, because so far I am the only person in this room other than you who hasn't been hit once." 

"Because you were hiding!" 

"Because I was strategizing!"  

"That's just a fancy way of saying—" 

The lights on Steve's vest died down, putting him back in the game. Steve raised his gun and shot twice: once at Bucky and once at Tony. Their vests lit up, stunning both of them into silence.  

"Oh thank god," Sam sighed. 

Clint winced. "This is not going to end well." 

Natasha nodded. 

Tony gaped at Bucky then at Steve.  

Bucky growled and jabbed Tony in the chest. "You see! You made yourself a target. If you had just listened—" 

"You're blaming me? That's rich coming from the guy who was also just shot." 

"I wouldn't have been if—" 

Steve pressed two fingers to his lips and whistled so sharply everyone in the room flinched.  

Bucky and Tony went silent.  

Steve shook his head. He glanced at Clint who was looking rather sheepish. Steve sighed. "I'm ending this training session now. Dismissed."  

"This is all your fault," Tony mumbled. 

Bucky elbowed Tony in the arm. 

* * *

 

"How about we get two mutual friends to fake their wedding, invite either Bucky or Tony to attend, and trick whoever is invited into bringing the other one along?" Clint tossed a fistful of popcorn into his mouth. 

Steve shook his head, tapping his pencil against his notepad. Dozens of potential ideas for Operation Iron Winter littered the page, but most of them had been scratched out.  

Steve chewed on the pencil's eraser as he glanced up at the TV where _Pretty Woman_ was playing. Clint had shown up at Steve's room hours ago with an armload of movies saying they had to watch them all for research purposes. They'd made it through _Bridget Jone's Diary_ and _Sleepless in Seattle_ so far. After the first movie, Steve had switched into sweats and seated himself cross-legged on the floor. 

Clint lay on his stomach and doodled things on his Stark Pad. Most of his doodles looked like angry Tony and Bucky trolls.  

"Boo!" Clint threw popcorn at the TV. "I honestly thought this movie would help us. For crying out loud, it's about some rich guy falling in love with a prostitute. It screams Tony and Bucky." 

Steve faked a glare at Clint. "Did you just call my best friend a prostitute?" 

Clint froze. Steve could see that Clint was replaying his words over in his head and was regretting them deeply. Steve had to trample down a smile as Clint shrank a little into himself. "Prostitutes are people too, you know, and very nice ones at that. I mean, anyone who's willing to give people head is nice, don't you think?" 

Steve held his glare. 

Clint turned pink. 

Steve couldn't hold it in anymore and burst with laughter. "It's okay, Clint. I knew what you meant. Also, you’re right, prostitutes are people too." 

"Yeah?" Clint lifted his head. His eyes sparkled with a mixture of hope and mirth. "So how many people do think after seeing this movie decided to become prostitutes?"  

"No idea." Steve looked down at the pad of paper in his lap and let out a breath of frustration. "I'm half tempted to just try for trapping them in a room together."  

"Won't work if Bucky is on to us. He'll know it's a set up and avoid discussing feelings on principle. Maybe if we could be certain Tony would open up then that might work. If Bucky really likes Tony, then other than an initial attempt, I don't see Bucky stopping Tony from speaking his mind. I doubt Bucky would reject Tony once Tony confesses either."  

"So we get Tony to talk." Steve scribbled the idea down. 

"Talking is easy, getting him to talk about his feelings when he doesn't want to is almost impossible. I think the only person who could get him to do it was Pepper."   

A heavy silence filled the room. Steve's heart ached for Tony. As much as Tony could get under Steve's skin and irritate him, he cared for Tony deeply and didn't like knowing how much pain the other man was in since the break up.  

Steve sighed and scratched off the notion about getting Tony to talk.  

"Send gifts to them under each other's names?" Clint suggested. 

"No. They eventually ask each other about it and then not only will Bucky know, but so will Tony." 

"How about shipping them off to France or Italy? I hear both are romantic."  

"You going to pay for the trip?" 

"I thought Tony might." 

"And how are you going to convince him without letting him in on Operation Iron Winter?" 

"Touché.”

They brainstormed for the rest of the night. Steve found the activity oddly enjoyable. It was nice having someone to just pal around with and plot the romantic ongoings of their teammates with. By the time Steve's alarm clock went off to signal it was time for him to wake up and go for his morning run with Bucky, he'd forgotten about Operation Iron Winter and laid down to enjoy one of Clint's movies. 

Steve moved to stand up and turn off his alarm clock, but Clint beat him to it by picking up the empty popcorn bowl and hurling it at the clock.  

Clint raised an eyebrow when Steve gave him a reprimanding look. "What?" He pointed at the TV screen. "I love this part."    

* * *

 

"Date each other." Natasha sipped her coffee like she had just delivered the daily weather report and not just encouraged two of her teammates to start a romantic relationship. 

Steve paused in buttering his toast and looked toward Clint to gauge his reaction to Natasha. While he'd become better at reading her it was times like these when he needed the proficiency of Clint to know how serious Natasha was being.    

Clint's eyes slid over Steve's form in consideration. "While Steve is certainly a prize, Nat, I don't see how the two of us dating will help with Operation Iron Winter." 

"It should be Winter Iron," Natasha stated. 

"We'll discuss it later," Clint promised. He’d probably keep it too, considering how hard he had to beg to get Natasha to join them in their plotting. She’d refused at first, citing once again that bringing Bucky and Tony together would be too easy, but she had reconsidered once Clint pointed out that Steve was helping. There had been a glint of intrigue in her eyes at the reveal, but she had kept calm and smoothly yielded to Clint’s demand for assistance.

Clint yanked the slice of toast off of Steve's plate and stuffed it in his mouth. "Now, explain to me how this convoluted plan works?" 

"Leaving them alone together failed. Pairing them off while keeping them in a group also failed. However, both attempts started successfully." Natasha took a sip of her coffee, letting her words sink in. "The initial success suggests potential, but the various components of their personalities trigger outbursts of rage. From what you have described they feel the need to display dominance and prove that they are the better man and/or an excellent mate." 

Steve blinked. "Say that again." 

Natasha smiled like a cat playing with a mouse. "They are having a ‘dick measuring contest’ in cruder terms."  

Steve nodded his understanding. 

"It's not too surprising. With Tony's money, power, and social standing he is used to being the partner who leads. From what you've told me about Bucky and from what I have seen with his more recent relationships, he also takes the lead. I'd say with more charm than Tony, but he's had a few fumbles here and there recently. I’m also slightly biased.

"Now, with both of them usually taking on leading roles in it of itself presents a challenge, you're also dealing with their massive insecurities. They both exhibit a lack of self-worth, stemming from different sources. Tony of course has always wondered if he is good enough in a general sense, but after his break up with Pepper he most likely does not believe himself capable of maintaining a long lasting relationship. I can't say with hundred percent certainty if the same can be said for Bucky, but I believe to an extent the same applies. What Bucky struggles with more is the guilt of his past deeds, and on a more superficial level, his arm. How can Bucky be good enough for anyone after what he has done, and how could anyone find him attractive with his prosthetic? Even if Bucky has had a few dates since his deprogramming, they aren't an accurate measure of attractiveness, because the parties involved were just looking for sex, and probably would have picked anyone." 

Steve clenched his fist. He never wanted to punch something so hard in his life. 

Natasha frowned then smoothed over her features so she wore a mask of nonchalance. "Those were just examples, Steve, not my opinion or necessarily the opinions of those Bucky has slept with. I simply laying out Bucky’s thought process on the matter, or at the very least, a thought process that is highly probable for Bucky to have."  

Steve gritted his teeth and breathed through his nose three times before he found himself capable of speaking without lashing out. "I know... I know. It's just not easy to hear. Not when--" 

"It sounds so plausible?" Natasha leaned back in her chair. "Reading people is what I do, Steve. You may not like it, but you know my assessment is accurate." 

"Right." Steve unclenched his fist, but still felt his fury boiling beneath the surface. He felt so powerless. 

Clint clapped a hand on Steve's knee and gave it a comforting pat. "It's okay, Cap. They'll be fine. Especially if we can get them to stop whipping out their dicks and measuring sticks long enough to realize that they could be doing something much more fun with aforementioned dicks."  

Steve chuckled despite himself. He pried Clint's hand off his leg, giving it a thankful squeeze before letting it go. He focused his attention on Natasha. "So Clint and I should date because...?" 

"I want to see you two kiss." 

Clint frowned. "I think she's serious." 

"Nat," Steve started. 

Natasha waved off Steve. "Bucky and Tony are compatible. Where their fault lies is the fact that both are used to taking the lead in their relationships, but unlike other people who could relinquish such a position, their securities keep them from yielding due to a fear that if they do yield they will somehow be vulnerable or perceived as vulnerable. Since we cannot send them off to couples counseling, what you need is someone there to act as a buffer and subtly point out to them that there is no threat. That they are truly safe with each other. However, adding a third party would lessen the atmosphere of romance. Most people are aware that it is not pleasant being a third wheel, therefore people will go out of their way to include the third party.  

"But if it's another couple," Clint interrupted and continued, "people are more inclined to let the couple be. So if Steve and I start dating and invite Bucky and Tony along on dates—" 

"It will be like we're double-dating, but without the added pressure of feeling like they really are on a date." 

Natasha nodded. "It will also have the added benefit of creating a romantic connotation whenever you four go out. And with Bucky and Tony already in lust and romantically inclined towards each other, it really is only a matter of time before one of them grows a pair and asks the other out." 

Clint grinned and pointed his thumb at Natasha. "Now you see why I recruited her for Shield?" he asked Steve. 

"It's unorthodox and convoluted," Steve admitted, "however, considering the two people involved, I think that may be exactly what we need."  

Clint scooted his chair closer to Steve's until their legs were pressed right up against each other. "Can my pet name be Gorgeous? Also, can I call you Cuddle Cap?" 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to check out my [Tumblr](http://akira-of-the-twilight.tumblr.com/).


	3. Chapter 3

There hadn't been much time to discuss dating terms with Clint when shortly after the plan had been settled on there had been an explosion in Tony's workshop.

Steve had rushed to the workshop just in time to see Dum-E spray Tony's ass with a fire extinguisher. Bucky and Bruce had showed up a second after Steve. Upon seeing the state of the room, the two had expressed their inquiries and concerns (Bucky's being more along the lines of: "You know there are better ways to get a hot ass, right?). 

Steve lectured Tony on safety, to which Tony rolled his eyes and waved off Steve's worries. Steve had been tempted to reprimand Tony more, but he convinced himself to wait and see if Tony caused another explosion. As unaffected as Tony liked to act, he did listen occasionally. So far, Tony had been good. 

It was hours later and Steve had finally gotten a hold of Clint. He invited Clint to the gym, knowing that most of the Avengers had already completed their exercises for the day; it was unlikely anyone would walk in on them. 

"So I doubt you invited me here just for me to show off my archery skills. Maybe my wrestling ones instead, right, Cuddle Cap?" Clint wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. He sauntered over to Steve's punching bag and gave it a swing. He winced at the impact and shook his hand. "You got cement in this thing?" 

Steve waltzed over to the bag and punched it, making it sway with ease. "I wanted to set some ground rules if we do this dating thing." 

"Hands above the waist?" Clint teased. 

Steve paused, mulling over what he wanted to say one last time before he delivered it. "I don't want this to be fake." 

Silence reigned supreme in the gym. 

"Are you asking me out _for real_ , Cap?" 

There was a hint of humor in Clint's voice and it made Steve smile. "Yes." 

Clint whistled in amazement. "Wow. I never thought Captain America would be interested in me. Tell me, when did you realize you were devastatingly attracted to me?" 

Steve guffawed. He slapped the punching bag, causing it to knock into Clint and send the archer stumbling a bit. He touched Clint's elbow to keep the archer steady. "Never. I just don't like the idea of lying to the team. So if we do this; it's for real." 

"But you're not devastatingly attracted to me?" Clint pouted. 

"Sorry to trample on your ego. Doesn't mean we can't enjoy each other's company. It will just be casual." 

Clint’s forehead crinkled in thought. "Like friends with benefits?"  

Steve winced. "Maybe a little bit more..." Steve searched for the word. "...serious. We'd date, but with the knowledge that it's not long term. Just until we get Bucky and Tony together."  

Clint made a show of stroking his chin in thought and hummed. "All right." He beamed at Steve. "Be careful though. I'm charming as hell. In a couple of weeks, you'll be wanting long term, trust me."  

Steve chuckled. "Never say never, right?"  

Clint winked. "Especially when it comes to dating me."    

 

* * *

 

Steve contemplated sitting the team down to make an official announcement about his and Clint's dating status, but decided against it for a few reasons. The number one for his decision being that he’d much rather tell everyone individually so if anyone had any questions or objections they wouldn't feel the need to censor themselves because of others in the room.  

He'd planned to tell Bucky first, but Steve had bumped into Sam on his way to bed after Clint and he’d had their chat. Sam had been surprised but accepted the new relationship in stride, which made Steve feel more confident about telling the others. 

Nonetheless, Steve found himself struggling to tell Bucky about the relationship on their morning run. It should have been easy; Bucky was his best friend and would support him. However, there was a paranoid part of Steve that insisted Bucky would somehow realize why Clint and Steve had gotten together in the first place. If Bucky knew the motives behind the relationship…well there were many possible outcomes, and most of them ended with Bucky furious.

By the end of their run, Steve was riddled with indecision and still struggled with his words.  

"You okay?" Bucky elbowed Steve playfully as he led them into the kitchen. 

Tony was doing his best zombie impersonation in front of the coffee maker as he waited for his "sweet ambrosia."  

Steve internally cursed. Now was the perfect time to tell Bucky and Tony about him and Clint, yet he still couldn't find the words.  

Steve yelped as a hand smacked him on the ass.  

"Hey, Cuddle Cap." Clint gave Steve's ass a squeeze and pecked Steve's cheek. "Looking good. Not everyone can pull off the sweaty look." Clint's eyes roved over Steve's form appreciatively, his eyes lingering on Steve's chest where some sweat had gathered. The perspiration had caused Steve's shirt to plaster and mold itself perfectly to Steve's form.  

Bucky's eyes widened minutely, whereas Tony only glanced in Clint and Steve's direction. Tony let out a cheer as the coffee maker beeped its completion. 

"Not so bad yourself." Steve returned the smack on the ass.  

Clint let out a horribly fake and playful growl that had Steve near bending over with laughter.  

Bucky had gone full on wide-eyed and Tony was frowning as he chugged down a mouthful of coffee. "Okay," Tony started. "I get homoerotic locker room ass smacking. I do, I really do. However, this all carries the disgusting hint of honeymoon romance with it."  

Clint spun on heel and sashayed over to Tony, snatching the mug of coffee from the inventor before Tony could stop him. Clint took a smug sip from the mug. "Pretty close. No official wedding date set, but CapHawk is official now."  

"Are you shitting me?" Bucky asked Steve. 

Steve sheepishly scratched the back of his neck. "Yeah." 

Bucky glared. "You never told me you have the hots for Barton." 

"Steve doesn't kiss and tell." Clint swung himself onto the counter, looking like an overgrown kid from his perch.  

Bucky snorted in dismissal. "I'm his best friend. He shares everything with me." 

"Don't be so possessive, Bucky," Clint joked. 

Relief and gratitude swelled in Steve's chest. He was delighted that Bucky had taken the news so well, and was thankful for Clint's intervention.  

Steve meandered over to Clint. He stood a head taller than Clint, forcing Clint to tilt his head back in order to look up at him. Steve waited a second for Clint to pick up his intention and when he saw no protest on the other man's face or in his demeanor, Steve leaned down to press a chaste kiss to Clint's lips.  

There was some shuffling in the kitchen, and when Steve pulled away from Clint it was to the sound of Bucky saying: "Where you goin', Stark?" 

Tony kept his back to the group as he marched out of the room. "Got work."  

"You haven't even gotten a full mug of coffee in ya," Bucky hollered at Tony, but Tony did not look back. He just kept going until he was out of the kitchen and out of sight. Bucky frowned. His hand clenched at his side. He whirled and went up to the coffee maker and loaded it for another cup. "Idiot will friggin' laser off his hand if he doesn't have at least one fuckin' cup."  

Steve stared at where he had last seen Tony's retreating back. His stomach knotted with worry. That had not been the reaction he'd expected out of Tony. He'd planned to be razzed and to hear innuendos out Tony’s mouth every time Clint and Steve were together. Tony's sudden retreat was worrisome and had Steve questioning every assumption he'd ever made about Tony. 

Clint sighed and patted Steve on the cheek. "Go be a hero, Mister Mom Man."  

"Thanks." Steve kissed Clint on the lips again, but instead of a quick catch and release, Clint fisted his fingers into Steve's hair and held the super solider in place. A hint of tongue ghosted along Steve’s lips. The teasing sensation sparked something in Steve’s gut, and he responded in kind to Clint’s kiss, enjoying the juxtaposition of soft lips and the subtle scratch of barely there stubble.

Clint gave a light nip to Steve's bottom lip when they finally parted. "You owe me. I enjoy my romantic early morning time and do not appreciate losing it."  

Steve nodded, a little surprised by the seriousness in Clint's tone. 

Clint smiled and released Steve's hair then gave him a shove in the direction Tony had taken off in. "Go get him." 

Steve hurried after Tony. Luckily, Tony wasn't having an utterly unpredictable day; the man still ended up in his workshop.  

Tony was camped out on the floor in a nest of metal and wires of his own creation as he typed something on his Stark Pad.  

Steve knocked on one of the tables as he approached Tony. 

Tony looked up from his work then resolutely looked down at it again. "I guess I owe you congratulations."  

Steve squatted in front of Tony, arms lying casually on his knees. "What's wrong?"  

"Who said anything was wrong? If anything, everything is great. Perfect. You and Clint are dating. You finally get to have a real relationship after years on ice and dealing with shit, and Clint gets to date the American dream. Although, technically that dream is supposed to come with two and a half kids, a car, and a house with a picket fence. This is New York though—who owns a car in New York? Besides me, because I'm awesome. Also, the tower more than makes up for the house, so all we have to work on is getting you two kids. I'm sure Bruce and I can whip up some test tube babies for you guys." 

"Tony, stop. Please, just tell me what's going on?" 

Tony scowled. "I already told you, which I shouldn't have to because it's your life. You and Clint are dating. You get your smartass troublemaker who lives in vents while he gets his super soldier who spend his days helping old ladies across the street."  

"I actually haven't done that in a while." 

"Shame on you, Steve," Tony mock chastised.  

At least Tony was still able to tease him, Steve thought to himself. Maybe if Steve couldn't see the tension in Tony's body as he talked or hear that particular edge Tony's voice took on when he was hurt but was too proud to admit it, Steve would have let the topic drop then and there, but he couldn't. "Why does Clint and me dating bother you? Do you having feelings for one of us?" Steve doubted it, but the only way he was going to make progress with Tony would be with direct questions.  

Tony wrinkled his nose. "With bird brain or Mr. Perfect? Ew. No."  

"Well then, I just don't get it, Tony. I know you don't care that Clint and I are both guys, and know you could care less about fraternization or how this might affect team dynamics. The only thing I can come up with is jealousy, and if you don't have feelings for either one of us then I'm just clueless."  

"Just because," Tony snapped. 

Right then Bucky entered the room, a steaming mug of coffee in hand. He glanced between Steve and Tony and rolled his eyes. "Jesus, it's like putting cats and dogs together." 

Tony jumped at Bucky's voice, half-turning to face his new guest. Tony opened his mouth to make a smart mouth comment, but before he could get anything out, Bucky bent down in front of Tony and stole the Stark Pad from him. Tony let out a shocked noise, but once again before he could verbally respond, Bucky set the mug on the floor and pushed it toward Tony. Without thinking, Tony scooped up the cup.

Bucky slid the Stark Pad onto the table closest to Tony so it was out of Tony's reach but still nearby so that Tony just had to stand to get it. "Honestly, there should be a law forbidding you from working in here without a full dose of caffeine." 

"Just try and make that law. My lawyers will be all over it in a heartbeat." Tony cautiously drank from the mug. He hummed in a mixture of thought and appreciation before drinking some more. "Not bad, Barnes. Maybe I'll let you make my coffee every morning." 

Bucky shoved Tony's shoulder. "Don't get used to it, punk." He stood up and headed for the door. "Try not kill each other," he shouted over his shoulder. 

Exasperation had Steve internally rolling his eyes at Bucky, but he couldn't deny he was delighted to see Bucky caring for Tony.  

Steve turned his attention back to Tony and froze.  

Tony was staring down at the mug in his hands, the smallest of smiles on his face. The expression was filled was an oxymoron of emotions. There was a certain fondness—tenderness—to the curve of Tony's lips, yet there was also a tint of sadness, a lack of hope.  

In that moment, Steve realized why Tony had left the room so suddenly. 

"A smartass troublemaker and his super soldier," Steve repeated to himself.  

He hadn't intended on Tony hearing, but the man must have, because Tony nodded in agreement.  

Steve felt a pang of guilt in his chest.  

Tony had been jealous, but not for the reason Steve had speculated.  

 

* * *

 

After two weeks of dating that included a weekend mission in which Fury got to learn about the relationship ("Just don't let it interfere with the mission," he'd said) and saving New York from some crazed scientist that Tony proclaimed "was a disgrace to the scientific community with his unoriginal and poorly constructed creations," Steve and Clint agreed it was time to start inviting Tony and Bucky along on their dates.  

"Aren't you guys still in the early stages?" Tony asked as he flopped onto the couch in the living room, taking up the piece of furniture in its entirety. "You sure you don't want us to leave you two alone?" Tony pointed at himself and Bucky, who was seated on the floor and sifting through Tony's collection of movies.  

Clint took out the bag of popcorn from the microwave, blowing on it during the process. He pointed to the cupboard above his head. "Bowl." 

Steve did as instructed. He leaned into Clint, keeping on hand on Clint's hip to keep himself steady as he fetched the bowl from the cupboard. "This was supposed to be a team activity," Steve said to Tony. "Just because the others couldn't make it doesn't change that." 

Truthfully, the team had been informed of movie night in all its details, which included that none of them were actually invited and that they'd have to come up with some creative excuses for why they couldn't attend.  

Thor was in Asgard. Sam had a date of his own. Bruce needed some time away from the city to meditate and calm himself. Natasha...well, she hadn't given much of an excuse. She'd just muttered something about having to hunt down some recluse in green.  

"Things change, Cap. If I were you, I would take serious advantage of the fact that you can just kick the two of us out and spend the rest night making out with Clint here, or you know..." Tony craned his head over the couch's armrest so he could see Steve's face. He grinned suggestively. "...you could make the evening less PG-13 and more NC-17."  

"We'll do that even if you two are in the room." Clint poured the bag of popcorn into the bowl Steve had retrieved for him.  

Bucky's head snapped up from Tony's movie collection. "I've seen Steve's pasty ass; I do not need to see yours too."  

"Behave." Steve pressed a kiss to Clint's cheek. There was just a hint of stubble where Steve's lips touched, adding just an edge of roughness to the kiss. Steve made an appreciative noise and took the bowl of popcorn away from the archer.  

"I always behave." Clint followed behind Steve, sidling up to his side and letting a hand rest on Steve's waist for a second before pulling away.  

Steve reached for Clint's hand and put it back on his waist, not wanting to end the pleasant contact just yet. 

Clint's fingers brushed Steve's spine for a second before he let his hand rest on Steve's back. "Since romance is the theme how about _Titanic_?" 

"No," Tony said, his tone demanding no arguments.  

Clint laughed. "Can't handle that level of romance?" 

Tony sat up. Furious red painted his face. "That movie is anti-romantic! Spoiler alert! She let's go of him in the end! Just lets him fall!" 

Clint full on laughed at that. "Don't tell me you’re one of those people who take it that hard?" 

Tony sneered. "She promised! After everything they had been through, after everything he had done for her, she just let go!" 

Steve and Bucky shared a look, neither quite following the conversation. Although, just the barest information on the movie was making Steve uncomfortable, and he found he wasn't just looking at Bucky for camaraderie, but because in the back of his mind he could see his friend hanging onto a train as Steve reached out to help him.  

Steve didn't know if Clint was picking up the energy of the room, or if Tony had given off some sort of facial cue, but Clint's playful demeanor vanished. His brow bunched in confusion and his lips arced downward. "Tony, you do realize she would have died, right? Do you really think after everything she and Jack had been through he would have wanted her to die?" 

Tony shook his head and collapsed on the couch. "You just don't get it!" 

Everyone was motionless as Tony stewed on the couch.  

Bucky put aside Tony's movie collection and crawled to Tony. The back of the couch blocked most of Steve's view, but from the angle it looked like Bucky had reached over, grabbed Tony's head, and had his face hovering inches from Tony's. It was only because of his super-hearing that Steve was able to hear Bucky grumble to Tony: "Take it from someone who has experience; he'd want the stupid girl to live and be happy. You got it, Stark?"  

When Tony responded, it was with petulance, "But she promised." 

Bucky shrugged. "Then just pretend there is a sequel in which we find out this Jack character was actually super human and he winds up in the twenty-first century. He hunts down the girl and marries her despite her probably breaking a hip every time they have sex." 

Tony chortled and almost bashed his skull into Bucky's. Bucky yanked his head back in time, and Steve caught sight of the victorious smirk on Bucky's face.  

Clint wrapped an arm around Steve's shoulders and nipped at his earlobe. "I personally prefer the version where he comes back and make outs with a sexy spy who uses bows and arrows instead of guns." 

"Shut up!" Tony hurled a couch cushion at Clint. 

Tony missed and knocked the popcorn bowl out of Steve's hands.  

Clint gasped and launched himself at the couch, tackling Tony to the ground. "You monster! How dare you waste such magnificent food!" 

Steve looked forlornly at the ground and sighed. "And here I thought he'd defend my honor." 

Another pillow flew at Steve's head, but he dodged it.  

Bucky, the pillow-thrower, leaned back on his arm, not looking the least bit innocent. "There is no honor among friends, just humiliating secrets and blackmail."  

 

* * *

 

A few days later, Steve woke up from a nightmare. His heart raced and his head swam with blurred images left over from his dream. He breathed heavily and clenched his blanket in his fists. He waited for his panic to die down—for the sounds of gunshots and screams to leave his ears. When he finally felt like he was no longer caught with one foot standing in the twenty-first century and the other in the war, Steve pushed himself out of bed. 

His clock read 3am; it was too early to wake Bucky or Sam up for sparring or a run. Tony might be awake though. Steve asked JARVIS and the AI informed Steve that Tony had fallen asleep at his workshop thirty-two minutes ago.  

"Mr. Rogers, it might interest you to know that Mr. Barton is playing video games in the living room if you'd like join him," JARVIS said. 

Steve blinked, his mind slowly processing the information. He knew Clint kept odd hours, rarely had Steve been privy to when Clint did so. "Thanks," he muttered and went to his bathroom. He splashed water in his face to help rid himself of the last vestiges of sleep then headed towards Clint.  

When he entered the living room, he found Clint half-heartedly playing what looked to be Mario Kart.  

"Hey." Steve took the spot next to Clint on the couch. 

Clint jumped, which made Steve flinch. He rarely caught Clint by surprise. Hawkeye truly was superb code name for Clint; he almost always spotted things long before most did.  For some reason tonight, Steve’s presence had been one of the rare exceptions.

Steve leaned against the opposite arm. He hooked his foot around Clint's ankle, enjoying the contact and taking comfort in it. The touch grounded him and reminded him of when and where he was. "Rough night?" 

Clint nodded. "You?"  

Steve nodded too. 

They didn't say anything, just basked in each other's company. Steve watched as some of the tension left Clint's shoulders, and Steve could feel his own muscles relax too the longer he stayed with Clint. The minutes stretched into hours, and as the sun slowly rose Clint's gameplay picked up enthusiasm. Soon Clint was cursing at the characters on the screen. 

"Hey, Bucky," Clint hollered as he directed his character to take a sharp turn. 

Steve craned his neck to peer over the couch. Sure enough, there was Bucky in his sweats and tank top. His hair was stacked high on his head in a messy bun that indicated he'd just rolled out of bed and hadn't bothered with making himself presentable. Befuddlement scrunched Bucky’s face and he eyed Steve with suspicion. "You're not dressed." 

Steve looked down at himself. He was in his boxers and his sleep tank. He stood and stretched. "Just give me a moment and I'll get ready for our run." 

"Everything okay?" Bucky asked. 

Before Steve could say anything, Clint paused the game and twisted in his spot. "Just some late night bonding." 

The suspicion was still in Bucky's eyes, but he didn't say anything.  

Steve moved to go, but Clint seized his wrist and yanked it so Steve bent down, his mouth just inches from Clint's grinning one. "What did I say about romantic mornings?" Clint asked.  

Steve huffed, pretending to be annoyed, but he couldn't fight the delight that warmed his chest and filled him with a sense of safety. He kissed Clint, letting it go deep and slow. He was vaguely aware of Bucky muttering something then walking out, but he ignored it in favor of enjoying the slide of Clint's mouth against his.  

When Clint broke their kiss, without think Steve chased after Clint's mouth, but Clint's hand on his chest stopped him. "Keep Bucky waiting too long and he'll get some evil ideas." 

The temptation to say "screw it" and just enjoy a good morning make out session was like a sweet siren song, and it startled Steve. He hadn't expected such a strong reaction from himself toward Clint.  

Steve leaned down for one more kiss, forcing himself to keep it short and chaste. "Might be worth it," he muttered as he walked away.  

 

* * *

 

“This is ridiculous! I am Tony Stark—Iron Man! Everyone in this club should be throwing themselves at me, not Barnes!” Tony gesticulated at the crowd that had formed around Bucky and his newest dance partner.

Steve didn’t know how Clint managed to pull it off but nit only had Clint found a bar and dance club dedicated to swing and jazz, but in a miracle of miracles Clint had gotten Tony to agree to join them.

Tony now got to be subjected to the same fate Steve had suffered when Bucky and him used to go out dancing. The women and men flocked to Bucky, and Bucky managed to impress every single one of them with his dance skills. There were only a few differences between Steve’s situation versus Tony’s. Whereas Steve had been jealous of Bucky’s popularity and felt left out, Tony was jealous of everyone in the room and covering up any hurt or anger he felt with petulance and sarcasm.

Tony threw back a glass of some drink that Steve hadn’t caught the name of as they sat at their table.

Steve looked longingly at the crowd, wanting to participate in the dance even if his skills were nowhere near Bucky’s level. It’d just be nice to do something that he’d grown up doing.

Clint’s foot hooked around his under the table, brushing Steve’s ankle in a comforting gesture.

Steve knew Clint had picked up on his desire to join the crowd, but Clint also knew not to ask for a dance; Steve wasn’t going to abandon Tony. Steve had been the guy left alone too many times at these things. He would not let Tony suffer the same circumstance, especially when he had the added pain of watching the fella he loved dance with everyone but him.

“What are you guys still doing here?” Laughter tinted Bucky’s voice as he sauntered up to the table, waving off the wandering hands of people reaching out for a turn to dance with him.

Tony scoffed. “And miss the show?”

Clint rested his chin on his hand and grinned. “Aw, Tony, don’t be jealous just because Bucky can dance and at best all you can do is The Robot.”

Bucky snickered.

Tony actually looked offended. “I am an excellent dancer, Barton. During one of the rare times my father decided to get involved in my life, he forced me to take dance lessons.”

Clint guffawed. “Really? That’s just too hilarious to picture. Tell me, did you take notes with physics equations to help you make the perfect twirl?”

“Only so I could build a dancing robot to take my place.”

Bucky studied Tony. The tilt of his head gave away his curiosity and the upward turn of his lips showed amusement. “All right, Stark, if you’re so good, dance with me.”

Tony jerked in surprise.

“Do it!” Clint cheered.

“I’d really like to see it too,” Steve said, playing along with Clint.

Tony hesitated.

Bucky put on hand on his hip and thrust the other at Tony. “C’mon, Stark. Put your money where your mouth is, or were you lying?”

Indignation lit up Tony’s face and he shot out of his seat. He slammed his hand into Bucky’s and yanked Bucky into the crowd. “I’ll show you, Barnes. You may lord of the dance but I am the king.”

Bucky chuckled. “Prove it.”

Clint grinned at Steve. “I know you want to dance, but can we please take a minute to admire the trainwreck that is about to occur?”

Steve smiled into his glass. “Sure, but it might not be a trainwreck. I doubt Tony would lie about being forced to take dance lessons.”

“We’ll see.” Clint all but cackled with glee as he watched Bucky and Tony take center stage in the crowd.

Tony took the lead position, which only seemed to amuse Bucky, but the soldier went along with Tony’s desire to lead. They danced, and Tony wasn’t bad. He wasn’t great either. His movements were stiff and it was obvious to Steve that Tony was doing his best to recall the precise movements, leading to a lot of the more basic ones being repeated.

As the song came to an end, Bucky said something to Tony and they stopped. They talked for a few seconds. Tony pouted but nodded.

“Ooh, Bucky’s turn to lead now,” Clint sang.

Steve raised an inquisitive eyebrow. “How are you so sure?” Just as the question left his mouth, Bucky took up the lead position. A new song started up, and suddenly it was like Tony was a new dancer. His movements were fluid and graceful under Bucky’s lead. Every response was quick and genuine. They moved like a well-oiled machine.

Clint whistled lowly. “Damn. I heard that if person leading knows what they’re doing they can make anyone look good, but I never believed it until now.”

Bucky wrapped Tony in the cuddle up and whispered something in his ear. Tony laughed as Bucky spun him out then back into his arms.

“So how about that dance?” Steve asked.

Clint hopped up. “Of course, it’s not like I picked this spot out just for Bucky to show off.” He picked up Steve’s hand and guided him out of the chair.

Confusion gnawed at Steve. “You didn’t?”

Clint laughed. “Of course not. You said you liked to dance too. Honestly, five more minutes of Tony moping and I would have forced you out onto the dance floor anyway. I wasn’t going to let him ruin our date.”

He grabbed Steve’s hand and placed it around his waist. “Now show me how you dance. Although, if you’re as bad as Tony I reserve the right to take over.”

“He wasn’t that bad.” Steve’s hand on Clint’s waist squeezed. He could feel the shift of Clint’s muscles as he readied himself for the dance.

“Just not as good as he is now.”

Steve rolled his eyes, but let it go. He spun Clint out into the dance.

It was obvious in seconds it wasn’t Clint’s first time swing dancing. He anticipated Steve step for step, and even once or twice stole the lead from Steve when Steve fumbled or mistepped. Clint always laughed it off, and soon Steve was switching the lead position off and on with Clint so seamless that to an outsider it probably looked planned.

“Oh! That was a good idea Tony had!” Clint exclaimed. “Quick! Do the cuddle move with me.”

Steve did so. Clint’s back hovered a teasingly inch away from Steve’s front.

The teasing ended—or maybe began, depending on one’s perspective—when Clint ground his ass into Steve’s crotch.

Steve spun Clint out, not missing a beat as he gave Clint a curious look.

Clint chuckled. “C’mon, Cuddle Cap. Just a little modern bump and grind, you know.”

Steve shook it off, a fond smile consuming his features.

Several times after that, Steve returned to the cuddle, and each time Clint rubbed up against him. Steve was thankful for loose pants otherwise everyone in the room would know the affect Clint was having on him.

When Clint took the lead, Steve returned the favor, surprising Clint if the yelp was anything to go by.

Not long after, Steve was being led off the dance floor by Clint and to some unoccupied booth.

Clint shoved Steve into the booth, and climbed into Steve’s lap.

Clint grabbed the back of Steve’s head and crushed their mouths together. Steve’s hands wandered to the edge of Clint’s shirt, his fingers teasing the hem. He hesitated. Worry formed a knot in his stomach. Clint and him might be dating, but he didn’t know how far Clint planned to take it.

Clint broke the kiss, his lips plump and red from kissing. “Cap, I am literally in your lap and sporting a hard on for you. Please throw your gentlemanly conduct out the window and get your hands on my skin.” He dove for Steve’s mouth.

Steve needed no more permission. His hands roved over taunt and warm skin, feeling every curve, dip, and muscle. Underneath the clothes and tactical armor Clint usually wore, there was a physique that could rival Steve’s. It shouldn’t have been so intriguing, yet something about Clint’s form had Steve wanting to touch it more and more. It was just the inkling of an addiction that Steve wanted to surrender to.

“Don’t mind us if we’re interrupting something,” Bucky’s teasing voice came from above.

Steve broke away from Clint to see Bucky and Tony smirking knowingly at them.

Embarrassment coiled in Steve’s stomach.

Clint huffed. “I will mind. I almost had gotten Steve to forget that there were other people here. Will you two go back to dancing already?” Even as he said it, Clint climbed off of Steve’s lap, taking a seat next to him instead. He cuddled into Steve’s side and squeezed Steve’s hand. He glared at Bucky and Tony. “If we ever catch either of you two making out, we’re going to cockblock you guys.”

“Just try, Barton,” Tony said. “I’ll keep going even if you bring an entire news crew to film it.”

“Well, that explains one of the sex tapes,” Bucky said drily.

“You saw them?” Tony asked.

Bucky grinned and sauntered off onto the dance floor. “Maybe.”

“Which ones?” Tony gave chase.

Clint rested his head on Steve’s shoulder and sighed. “I know I’m one to talk, but those two are like children.”

Steve nuzzled his cheek against Clint’s head. He closed his eyes and took delight in the feel of Clint’s hand in his. He breathed in the faint musk of Clint’s scent. “Thanks.”

“For the make out session?” Clint chuckled. “You’re more deprived than I thought if it meant that much to you.”

Steve shook his head. “For bringing us here. It almost feels like my time again.”

Clint went silent.

Clint tightened his hold on Steve’s hand and turned his head so he pressed a kiss to Steve’s cheek. “No problem, babe.”

 

* * *

 

 

"C'mon, Barnes, let's see who the real sharpshooter is." Clint held up a handful of darts from a darting throwing game booth. 

Clint had planned a double date at the carnival. So far Steve and Clint and purposefully lost Bucky and Tony in the house of mirrors, had forced Bucky and Tony to sit together on all of the roller coasters, and even gotten Tony and Bucky to agree to climbing into an old photo booth to take a cheesy photo.  

Bucky acted unimpressed by Clint’s challenge, but still strolled up to the game booth. He eyed the various targets. After a moment he slapped down a few bills. "You're on, birdbrain." 

"That's my nickname for Clint," Tony said in fake offense, standing behind Bucky. Like Bucky, he assessed the game. He turned to Steve. "Twenty dollars Bucky beats Clint."  

Steve held up his hands in surrender. "There is no winning side for me in this."  

"Don't say that Cuddle Cap. If I win, I'll give you that giant teddy bear." Clint inclined his head at the neon magenta bear hanging on the booth's wall. Suddenly, a shark like grin consumed Clint's features. "How about this?" He aimed at Bucky. "How about whoever wins the most stuffed animals for their guy gets the title for best shot?" 

Like a switch, Bucky's face went from casual calm to anger. "I don't have a ' _guy_ '." There was so much accusation and resentment in Bucky's voice, Steve was almost distracted by it so much he nearly missed Tony's flinch.  

For not even a full second Tony's body went rigid and there was so much disappointment and acceptance in his countenance that Steve felt like Thor had swung his hammer right into Steve's gut. At that moment, Steve wanted to grab Bucky by the shoulders, spin him around, and shout at him to friggin' look at Tony already and realize the scientist was completely lost on Bucky.  

At the same time Steve want to grab Tony too and beg him to express his feelings to Bucky.  

"Tony can be your stand in guy." 

Tony had his haughty mask on in a heartbeat. "I am no one's stand in guy." 

Clint eeked exasperation. "Deal with it." He tapped one of the darts against his leg. "Are you in or what Barnes? If you really care, you can just keep all the stuffed animals for yourself. Not like Tony can't buy a dozen toy stores without breaking a sweat."  

Bucky hesitated for a moment then hurled one of his darts at a target, hitting it dead center. "Just try to keep up." 

Just like that, the two were going at it like they were playing with their toy guns in Avengers Tower. Their accuracy and efficiency was scary good, especially when they started to get into trick shots. Even so, the longer the two went at it and the more complicated they'd try to make their shots, the more obvious it became that while Bucky had excellent aim, when it came to ricocheting the darts off of other objects onto the target, Clint had Bucky beat.  

The game ended with both shooters having a large pile of stuffed animals at their side, and Clint winning the giant bear. 

Clint glowed with joy and smugness as he handed the bear over to Steve. "Love you, babe." He kissed Steve. 

Steve flushed at the declaration. Clint had to be joking. They'd only been dating a few weeks. 

Then again, Steve had fallen for Peggy in just as short a time. 

"Thanks," he said, just to be safe. He hugged the bear close to his chest. It was too large and bright for his taste, but even so he found himself liking it just because Clint had given it to him.  

Tony clamped a hand on Bucky's shoulder, giving a sympathetic nod. "You'll get him next time. We all know who's really the best around here." 

Bucky shrugged off Tony's hand, but still kept the mood light with an airy smile. "Even a beginner can get lucky." 

"I'm no beginner." Clint stuck out his tongue. He turned to the person operating the booth. "Can we get a bag for these things, by the way?" He pointed at his pile of animals. The stack precariously sat on the edge of the both and reached Steve’s chest in height (Steve would make certain Clint donated most if not all of the animals to children).

A minute later the animals were packed away and the quartet were strolling through the carnival, discussing what to do next when Clint's stomach growled. After some looking around, they found a few picnic tables and claimed them. Once their claimed had been made Clint declared that Steve and Bucky should get everyone food because, "you two are the super soldiers. Us, lowly mortals are fatigued and need to let our feet rest. Plus, someone’s gotta keep an eye on the bags. You two can handle the legwork."  

Steve and Bucky agreed; although Bucky protested a little on principle.  

Tony reached into his wallet and pulled out cash. 

Bucky tensed and Steve could already see the fight coming. 

Things had been relatively peaceful and Steve refused to let something as trivial as who paid get in the way of their good day.He snatched up the cash and thanked Tony before Bucky could get a word in edgewise. Then just to be certain Bucky wouldn’t throw out a delayed protest, he all but sprinted away, knowing Bucky would follow.

Bucky did just that, giving Steve a curious look when he caught up to Steve.

Steve just played it off with a smile and a discussion about where they could get food. They recalled the various places they'd seen that offered food and debated the merits of each location until settling on a place.  

As they waited in line to get Chili dogs and fries, Bucky shifted in discomfort. Steve could sense Bucky wanted to say something, so he kept quiet and waited.  

Finally, Bucky spoke, "This may sound paranoid, but are you dating Clint just so Tony and I will too?" 

Steve put on his most innocent face. "That does sound paranoid." 

Bucky scowled. "I knew it!" 

"I didn't say—" 

"It's written on your face, Rogers." 

Steve sighed in defeat. He never was good at lying to Bucky. "We are dating though. Really." The line moved and Steve followed it. "It's nothing serious, but yeah, part of the reason why we even considered going out was to see if we could...lull you and Tony into dating." 

"Do you hear how stupid that sounds?" 

"You do realize you've essentially been dating Tony every time the four of us have gone out, right?" 

Bucky jerked like he had been slapped. "I have not. We—we're not—" Bucky snapped his mouth shut then tried again. "We have not been dating. That requires kissing, hugging, and hand holding, and that's keeping it kid friendly, Rogers."  

"I always considered dating to be when people who are interested in each other romantically go out and enjoy each other's company. The stuff you mentioned is just extra."  

"God damn it, Steve." Bucky smothered his face in the palm of his flesh hand. He groaned in frustration. "Fine, let's say I let you have that and agree Tony and I have essentially been double-dating with you and Clint. Why would you set us up after I told you I don't have feelings for Stark?"  

"Because you do," Steve snapped. He mentally chastised himself for letting his anger get the better of him. He took a deep breath and moved up in the line. He kept his voice calm and level the next time he spoke. "You flirt and banter all the time, and I know, flirting and bantering are second and third languages for you and Tony; however, there are so many little things you do for each other and say to each other that speak volumes. The fact that you made Tony coffee just because he hadn't had any yet for example, and don't say it's because he'd injure himself otherwise. That would just prove my point more. Also, how about when you cheered Tony up about that movie? You didn't have to do that, but you did. Heck, even your fight at laser tag says something." 

Bucky snorted in amusement. "Do tell." 

"You didn't want Tony to get hit." 

"To win the game, Steve." 

"Would you want him to get hit on the field?" 

"Of course not, but that's because he's my teammate."  

"Can't you be honest with me?" Disappointment coated Steve's voice. 

"Like you were with me about Clint?" 

"I told you, we _are_ dating Bucky." 

"And if Tony and I were to hook up right now?" 

Steve hesitated. The purpose of dating Clint was to get Bucky and Tony together, but Steve was really enjoying his relationship with Clint. Clint made him laugh, kept him on his toes, and Steve couldn’t deny now that he'd start making out with Clint, he was gaining a strong appreciation for the archer’s lithe body.  

"I'd hope that Clint and I would stay together," Steve answered. 

Bucky glared and opened his mouth to hurl accusations at Steve but stopped. His forehead scrunched as he took in Steve's face. He cursed in Russian. For a good solid ten seconds all Bucky did is spew out profanity after profanity in Russian. "God damn it, Steve. You're serious." 

"Yeah." Steve smiled softly at his confession.  

Another Russian curse. Bucky ran his hand through hair in frustration. "You just had to actually like the guy, didn't you?" He glared. 

Steve chuckled. "Yup." 

"Friggin' ruins a good chunk of my argument." 

"Bet it does." 

"Asshole."  

It was their turn to purchase food. Steve ended up ordering enough food that to bystanders it probably looked like he was preparing to feed a classroom of kids on a school field trip. In the end, Steve and Bucky had to ask the guy manning the food to give them extra bags to carry the stuff in. 

As they headed back to Tony and Clint, Bucky spoke up again. "Why are you so insistent on me and Tony?" 

"Because you both are head over heels for each other." 

Bucky let out a huff of disbelief. "If that's true then why hasn't he asked me out?" 

"Why haven't you?" 

Bucky was silent.  

Steve sighed. "If you want my honest opinion, I don't think Tony will ask you out anytime soon. Not because he isn't interested or doesn't want to, but because for whatever reason he's already accepted defeat." 

Bucky's head perked up in interest. "What are you talking about?" 

Steve shook his head. "You just don't see it, do you? Then again, I didn't see for a while there either, and the moments are easy to miss if you aren't looking for them." 

"Moments?" 

"He just looks sad. Lost, really. You probably didn't see it earlier, but if you had been looking when you dismissed Tony as your fella... well, you would have seen it. It was just this broken look. Like everything that mattered had been taken from him." 

"And what makes you think I haven't given up?" Bucky challenged. 

Steve stopped, and stared at his friend, trying to get across how serious he was being. "Because, no matter how messed up you feel about yourself, no matter what doubts run through your head about Tony and/or yourself, you have never looked even remotely half as crushed when Tony dismisses you, nor have you ever shied away from Tony. In fact, it's the opposite. You're always starting shit with Tony.  If you're not taking care him in some way, you're acting like a five-year-old pulling on his crush's pigtails." 

"I do not—" 

"Who starts the wrestling matches? Who likes throwing barbs just as much as Tony? Who is always challenging Tony to races and things—to dancing just so you two can dance together? Don’t deny it,” Steve cut Bucky off. “Who was planning to shoot Tony first at laser tag until they were partnered up with him? In fact, who was going to wait and shoot Tony, _his partner_ , at the last second of the game just to be a punk?"  

Bucky looked away, biting down a smile. "You got me with the last one."  

Steve heaved a heavy breath. "I can't force you two to be together, Buck. And maybe I'm wrong. Maybe you two don't like each other as much as I think you two do. Maybe I'm wrong about Tony being too defeated to ask you out. Maybe I'm wrong that you are _not_ defeated. I just want you two to be happy, and I think you can achieve that by being together." Steve shrugged and started walking again. "As I said, maybe I'm wrong." 

Bucky wasn't quick to follow Steve. He appeared rooted to the spot for a few seconds. His lips pursed as he turned Steve's words over and over in his head, until finally he took off after Steve. 

 

* * *

 

"Why does it always have to be an army of robots?" Clint whined over the comms. 

It was another battle for New York, and the Avengers were in the middle of the fray.  

"Now that just isn't true." Tony tutted as he flew through the streets, zapping at robots as he passed. 

A robot jumped off the side of a building, aiming for Tony, but Steve hurled his shield at it.  

"Two months ago we had a lizard army," Tony went on, not at all fazed by the battle. 

"Chatter," Steve said, dashing through the fallen debris. "Widow, how are we coming along with the civilians?" 

"Civilians removed. Mostly minor injuries. Bruce is attending those whose injuries require immediate attention." 

Three robots launched at Steve and he took them out with one swing. "Keep it that way, Widow. Stay close to act as first line of defense in case any of those bots head your way." 

"Understood." 

Steve surveyed the area for more robots, but it appeared he'd demolished those nearby. "Hawkeye, what's your visual of where I'm standing?" 

"Sexy as hell, but you probably want to know about the robot that's about to zap you from behind." 

Steve whirled. 

And arrow pierced the robot, shutting down its systems and causing its wiring to fry. 

"Your welcome," Clint said. "Also, our guy responsible for this little robot show is heading north. If you go north too and Falcon goes west, you two should be able to intercept him at that weird Starbucks. You know the one where all the baristas dress like furries, except for that one guy. I really need figure out what’s up with that guy." 

"Got it," Sam said. 

"How about some real coordinates?" Steve asked. 

Clint supplied the coordinates, and Steve took off. 

"Could use some help here," Tony said. "These guys are trying to hitch a ride." Tony zoomed overhead. He had five robots clinging to his arms and legs, making it impossible for him to aim his replusors at his hitchhikers.  

Bucky swore over the intercom. A bullet shot down the robot holding Tony's left arm. "Got one for you Iron Buns, but I've got my own fan club groping me." 

Steve could hear Bucky firing off a few rounds over the comm. 

Tony shot off his clingers. Two of the robots exploded midair.  

"That's not good." Tony went off on a tangent filled with science terms Steve couldn't understand.  

Steve jumped over a car. He could see their mad man heading toward a bank with a large sack of explosive devices strapped to his back. Coming up behind him was Falcon. "English, Tony." 

"The robots that stole my fashion choice? You know the ones with the blue light in the center? Don't hit the light unless you want an explosion."  

"An explosion is exactly what I need right now," Bucky said. 

There was a gunshot. 

Steve tackled the man responsible for the robot attack. 

An explosion out rang in Steve's ears.  

The man responsible for the robot attack shouted and hurled insults. He reached for something in his bag, but Sam landed right next to the man and kicked his hand away from his weapons. Together Steve and Sam restrained the man. "We got our guy. Status report, Bucky?" 

Silence. 

"Clint, can you make out anything from your position?" 

"Negative," regret coated Clint's voice.                                  

The bottom dropped out of Steve's gut, and for one terrible moment he felt utterly alone and broken.  

Bucky coughed. "Wasn't expecting it to be that big." 

"That's what she said," Tony replied.  

Everyone on the comms groaned, except Steve. Hope pumped up his chest and he found himself laughing from pure relief. "Status report, Bucky." 

"Banged up pretty bad, but I'll live. All robots here are taken care of." 

"And you yell at me for my explosions," Tony griped. 

"At least mine don't set my ass on fire."  

"Just your whole body." 

"Chatter," Steve said, although his heart wasn't in it. If they didn't still have a few robots to eliminate and need to deal with the fallout of the attack, Steve would have happily let Bucky and Tony bicker just so he'd have Bucky's voice to reassure himself that his friend was alive.  

Getting rid of the remaining robots was easy but time consuming. Just when Steve would think they'd cleared the area, a group of robots would show up and attack. It wasn't until two hours later that Steve and the rest of the Avengers could rest and seek medical attention.  

Bucky was already seated on a gurney with his shirt off as a doctor looked over his wounds. Bucky watched the doctor with open wariness, but the woman seemed unfazed. Most of Bucky's wounds had healed to the point of being scratches, but one wound just inches away from his heart went far too deep for comfort. 

"How is he?" Steve asked the doctor. 

The woman smiled at Steve. "He'll be fine. By now most of his injuries are superficial." 

Steve frowned. He pointed at the wound near Bucky's heart. Bucky scowled and smacked his hand away. "It looks worse than it is, punk." 

Steve looked to the doctor for confirmation. She nodded. 

Steve sagged in relief.  

Fingers laced through Steve's. Steve tensed and whirled, still running on battle mode. Clint stood behind him, brow furrowed with worry. He squeezed Steve's hand tighter. "You going to be okay? For a moment out there you looked like someone had sucked the life out of you." 

Steve nodded, returning Clint's white-knuckle grip on him. He brought their clasped hands to his mouth and gave them a kiss. "Yeah, fine. Just was caught off guard."  

Clint frowned. "We are so having Ben & Jerry's after this." 

"Isn't that for break ups?" Steve asked. 

"And heartaches!" Clint protested. He let go of Steve's hand only to throw his arms around Steve’s neck and yank his head down. "Now give me a real post-battle kiss." 

"Hate to interrupt this hallmark moment, but could you two scoot over a bit?" Tony stopped in front of Steve and Clint. He was in nothing but his undersuit and holding a mini-tool kit. "As the only genius engineer here, I feel it is my duty to make certain Barnes here didn't ruin that beautiful arm of his, and you two and your mushy romance feelings are in my way."  

Steve and Clint shared a look of amusement and stepped out of the way. 

Tony plopped himself on the gurney right next to Bucky and grabbed the metal arm without any preamble. He ran his fingers over it, checking for dents. Bucky watched him the entire time, a small contemplative frown on his face as Tony's fingers danced along his arm. Tony walked Bucky through flexing his fingers then his arm.

"Everything looks fine. We should go back to the workshop and have it examined just in case." Tony set Bucky's arm in the soldier's lap. 

Tony moved to stand, but Bucky snaked his metal arm around Tony's waist. 

Tony froze. 

Bucky feigned innocence. "I didn't do it." 

Tony hit Bucky with a deadpan stare and pointed to the arm wrapped around him. "Really? Because that's not what it looks like." 

Bucky shrugged. "Must be malfunctioning." His arm squeezed Tony closer, forcing their sides to press together. 

Tony tapped his fingers on Bucky's metal wrist. "Well then, we are definitely going to have to play doctor when we get back to the tower."  

"Only if you wear a sexy nurse outfit."  

Tony almost said something then shut his mouth when Bucky dragged Tony onto his lap. There was a moment in which Tony just stared at Bucky in awe and confusion as Bucky smirked at him. 

"Are you being serious right now?" Tony asked. "Because I'm having a hard time reading this situation. Must be all the smoke in the air, not enough oxygen for my brain." 

"Date me," Bucky said. 

Tony's head snapped up, looking at Bucky's doctor pleadingly. "Has he suffered any head injuries?" 

The woman frowned and shook her head.  

"Is he on pain meds?" 

She shook her head again. 

Tony stared at Bucky with so much disbelief, pity tugged on Steve's heart. Bucky must have seen the astonishment and doubt too, because his expression softened and his thumbs rubbed encouraging and soothing circles into Tony's hips as he waited for Tony's response. 

Finally, a grin as bright as the sun spread across Tony's face. He laughed. His forehead met Bucky's. "Asking me to date you after you almost get killed in battle? You're such a sap, Barnes. You're lucky I like you so much."  

"Right back at ya, dollface." Bucky closed the last inches between them with a kiss. 

Clint fake sniffled next to Steve and rubbed his nose. "It's so beautiful." 

Steve cuffed Clint. "Knock it off." 

"Aw, don't tell me you're not happy?" Clint asked. 

"Delighted. Although, this does leave one question.” Steve held a beat as his nerves got the better of him for a second. “Are we still dating?" Steve mentally braced himself for rejection. He may have come to enjoy his time with Clint and wanted to continue spending time together, but he had no idea if the other man felt the same. He wouldn't push Clint into anything the man didn't want. 

"Depends," Clint answered. "You still want to date?" 

"I'd like to, if you'd let me." 

Clint snorted and wrapped his arms around Steve's neck again. "I'd be a pretty big idiot if I let you get away." Clint smiled coyly. "You're the first boy not to ask me to put out on the first date. Second and third dates too. A real gentleman." 

Steve rolled his eyes.  

Clint laughed. His eyes sparkled with mischief as he leaned closer and breathed against Steve's lips. "Now how about that kiss we were about to have before we were so rudely interrupted?" 

Steve leaned down to comply when a flash stopped him.

Steve and Clint both looked to the flash’s source to find Natasha standing there with a cell phone. Sam was next to her and shaking his head in incredulity, but smiling nonetheless.

“I told you once they started dating they wouldn’t want to break up.” Natasha typed something into her phone then pocketed it. “Captain Hawk ships Winter Iron is a success.”

Steve extracted himself from Clint and cocked his head as he tried to figure out what Natasha was getting at.

Clint gasped. “No. You didn’t.”

“Are you shitting me?” Tony hollered from Bucky’s lap.

Bucky looked just as confused as Steve was, but was enjoying a fistful of Tony’s ass nonetheless. Steve would have commented on the PDA if he weren’t busy trying to puzzle together what Clint and Tony had clearly figured out before him.

“You’ve been setting us up all along?” Tony accused Steve and Clint.

Or maybe Tony had only figured out _that._

Clint snorted and batted off Tony’s anger. “Like you’re going to care in five minutes once you and Barnes get naked and make the beast with two backs. What you should be freaking out about is that Nat just played all of us into dating each other.”

“I’m not dating you,” Bucky rebuked.

“Not me—Tony!” Clint shouted. “You’re dating Tony, Tony is dating you, Steve is dating me, and I am dating Steve, and she planned it all along.”

Natasha’s ruby red lips curved into a coy grin filled with a promise. If it weren’t aimed at her teammates Steve would say it was a promise of malice that her victims would never see coming.

“But you and Steve have been dating all along,” Buck argued, a hint of anger and suspicion entered his tone.

Steve knew immediately what had set off Bucky’s emotional response and hurried to rectify it. “We have been dating, but remember what I said about it, Bucky? How I didn’t know what would happen after you and Tony got together? Well, now it’s officially long term.”

“Wait.” Tony held up a hand to silence everyone. “Let me get this straight: Clint and Steve got together in some convoluted attempt to get Bucky and me together? Before that though, Natasha convinced Steve and Clint to date for aforementioned reason, in the hopes that they’d stay together afterwards?” Tony’s eyes narrowed at Natasha. “I am not sure how I feel about your puppetmaster skills, missy.”

“You love it.” Natasha thrust her hand at Sam. “My winnings.”

Sam sighed, fished out his wallet, and slammed a fifty in her palm.

“All of you are ridiculous.” Bruce said, causing half the team to jump in surprise at his presence. He must have wandered up at some point in the commotion. He shook his head and released a deep sigh. “I’m going back to the tower.” With another shake of his head, he left the group.

“The four of you can thank me later,” Natasha said, running after Bruce.

The remaining five Avengers all traded looks.

“You betted against us?” Steve asked Sam.

Sam held up his hands in a show of no harm intended. “Not seriously. Natasha offered it, and I accepted more out amusement than anything. You guys are actually kind of cute together.” He backed away, spreading his wings. “Which is why I am going to leave you four alone to sort out your relationships.” The mechanisms of Flacon’s wings hummed just before he launched into the air and flew away.

The quartet was once again left exchanging uncertain looks between them.

“Fuck it.” Tony whirled on Bucky. “Are you really undamaged except for a few surface wounds?”

“Yeah. I should be able—” Bucky squawked as Tony threw all of his weight on Bucky, knocking the super soldier flat on the gurney as Tony shoved his tongue down Bucky’s throat like there was buried treasure inside. Bucky groaned, squeezed Tony’s ass cheeks, and ground their hips together.

Steve spun away from the sight, his ears and cheeks burning.

The doctors and medical staff shouted at Bucky and Tony to tone down their affection (there were children nearby).

Laughter burst from Clint.

Steve opened his mouth to tell Clint not to encourage Bucky and Tony, but suddenly Clint was standing in front of Steve and cupping Steve’s face. He winked at Steve. “So, third try is the charm, right? Can we go for that kiss now?”

“Just as long as you don’t try to show up Tony and Bucky.”

“Aw, Cuddle Cap.” Clint kissed Steve on the nose. “Would you really put a limit on my love?”

The flush across Steve’s face grew stronger and he struggled to meet Clint’s eyes. “Don’t be silly.” Steve bent down, kissing Clint chastely. He felt Clint’s lips curve into a smile against his. Steve lingered for a second longer than he intended, just happy to share in the small intimacy, then pulled away. “You know the answer.”

Clint grabbed Steve’s hand and squeezed. “Yeah, I think I got an idea of that.”

“How come when Bucky and I kiss, we get yelled at, but it is perfectly acceptable for Clint to molest an American Icon?”

“True hypocrisy,” Bucky agreed.

Steve cringed. “Maybe we shouldn’t have gotten them together?”

Clint chuckled and wrapped his arms around Steve. "And miss out on proving who is the ultimate couple? I think not. It's Winter Iron versus Captain Hawk now."

Steve groaned, letting his forehead fall against Clint's. He closed is eyes as if in pain, but the corner of his mouth twitched upward. He was dating a world class troublemaker who got his kicks from messing with Tony Stark and Bucky Barnes. Steve's life was never going to be the same and he'd probably end up in the middle of a prank war between the three at least once a week.

A thrill of excitement went up Steve's spine and he kissed Clint.

At least the future wouldn't be boring.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, come chat with me on [Tumblr](http://akira-of-the-twilight.tumblr.com/), or you know, just stare at all the pretty pictures I reblog.


End file.
